GREENLAND — For the Greenland Police Department, the holidays have long been a time to come together, and the late Chief Michael Maloney was the one who made sure that tradition continued each year.

There was an annual ski trip in the winter, and in December, the chief organized a large group outing in Portsmouth, or down in Boston, and picked up the tab for his department, according to Greenland Chief Tara Laurent.

But this year, the department was visited by a tragedy that will be remembered by a generation of Seacoast residents. While assisting with the execution of a search warrant earlier this year, Maloney was fatally shot, moments after he helped a wounded officer to safety.

The late police chief's selfless actions on April 12 garnered national attention. Maloney, 48, had served with the Greenland Police Department for 12 years and was only about a week away from retirement at the time of his death.

“That was his MO,” Laurent said this month, remembering the fallen chief. “He was always involved and he participated.”

Foster's Daily Democrat has selected Greenland Police Chief Michael Maloney as the 2012 Newsmaker of the Year, in recognition of his actions on the day of the shooting.

“We will never forget the courage and bravery shown by Chief Maloney and our law enforcement officers undercover that day,” New Hampshire Attorney General Michael Delaney said at a news conference earlier this month. “Chief Maloney died saving the lives of his fellow officers, protecting the quality of life in that neighborhood, and attempting to remove a threat to the safety and the well-being of the citizens of his community.”

For the Greenland Police Department, the last six months have brought constant reminders of the episode. For Laurent, the holiday season evokes memories of outings with the chief.

“He was a hero the way he lived, but (we don't) often enough take the time to recognize people for the wonderful things they do,” she said.

Maloney grew up in North Hampton, and graduated from Winnacunnet High School in Hampton. He served in the U.S. Army Reserves before starting his 26-year career in law enforcement.

He began working as a part-time officer in Rye, then joined the North Hampton Police Department. He promoted up through the ranks, becoming chief in 1997.

In 2000, Maloney transferred to the Greenland Police Department, and served as chief until his death in 2012.

Maloney has been posthumously awarded the New Hampshire Police Chief's Association Medal of Honor, as well as the Medal of Valor from the New England Association of Chiefs of Police.

He was also given Above and Beyond the Call of Duty & Career Service awards from New Hampshire's congressional delegation.

The New Hampshire Red Cross will also be honoring Maloney at a hero's breakfast in March, and his name will be part of the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial, which is in an area known as Judiciary Square in Washington D.C., following a ceremony in May.

Earlier this year, during a public memorial at Winnacunnet High School, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder honored Maloney for his choice to spend his career serving the public.

“Although he could have chosen an easier path or a safer one, he wanted to make a difference, and he did,” Holder said. “His ultimate sacrifice was made so that others might survive.”

Survivors describe Maloney's actions on the day of his death

The drug raid at 517 Post Road in Greenland had been planned by members of the New Hampshire Attorney General's Drug Task Force in hopes of avoiding a confrontation.

On the day of the drug raid, the plan was to have two uniformed Greenland officers knock on the door and draw suspected drug dealer Cullen Mutrie into the driveway. DTF members would then arrive and help keep Mutrie outside the home while they conducted a search of the property.

Maloney and the Greenland officers had interacted with Mutrie face-to-face on past occasions, and the drug task force chose to execute the raid at Mutrie's home in Greenland rather than another location because of previous contacts between Mutrie and local police.

“We (the DTF officers) can't go knock on his door,” Dover Detective Dev Atma Khalsa explained in a recorded interview with state police, “but we figured they (Greenland police) could talk to him — you know, just talk to him.”

Maloney was supposed to remain outside the house and secure the premises while the DTF members were searching inside the house, Greenland Police Officer Wayne Young told investigators.

When the drug raid was executed, two Greenland officers knocked on Mutrie's door and received no response. Members of the Drug Task Force forced open the door, and were immediately met with gunfire.

Newton Police Officer Christopher Thurlow, a member of the task force, discharged his weapon. As he ran to take cover, he saw Newmarket Detective Scott Kukesh, one of four wounded officers, nearby.

Thurlow said he grabbed Kukesh and dragged him back toward Maloney's cruiser, and Maloney met them along the way.

“I remember somebody grabbed me from behind and brought me over to a police cruiser,” Kukesh said in a recorded interview. “It was a Greenland cruiser. And, at that point I looked up and I realized it was Chief Maloney ...”

He continued, “I guess I wasn't looking too good and the chief immediately came back and I remember him say(ing), 'Scott, I'm going to take your rifle. You're OK.'”

Officer Theodore Hartmann was handling calls at the Greenland police station before the drug raid got under way. He took up a position near the house, then rushed to the scene when shots were fired seconds later.

Hartmann said he parked his cruiser and took out his rifle, then saw Maloney and another Greenland officer crouching beside a patrol cruiser nearby. Maloney motioned with his hand for Hartmann to approach.

“I want the car,” Maloney said. “I want the car.”

Maloney assisted in loading Kukesh and Dover Detective Greg Turner into the back of Hartmann's car, and Hartmann sped away toward Portsmouth Regional Hospital with the wounded officers.

Greenland Police Officer Wayne Young told investigators he was at the rear of the home when the shooting broke out. He took cover beside the Drug Task Force sedan and looked over at Maloney, still unaware of the number of casualties.

He said Maloney called out a final warning to him.

“I just remember the chief telling me stay down, Stay down, stay down,'” Young said during an interview with state police. Young said he doesn't remember hearing the fatal bullet that struck Maloney moments later.

Investigators say Mutrie shot Maloney from a basement window with a 9 mm handgun as Maloney was taking cover behind his police cruiser.

When State Police Sergeant Steven Cooper arrived at the scene, a Portsmouth officer was holding Maloney's pistol. It was fully loaded, with one bullet in the chamber, and had not been fired, Cooper reported in an affidavit.

By 7:38 p.m., the scene was hectic at Portsmouth Regional Hospital. Five officers had been shot, and a nurse outside of exam room 16 was crying, according to an account by Portsmouth Detective Timothy Cashman.

Cashman went into the first hallway by the nurse's station and spoke with an officer from the University of New Hampshire Police Department.

Maloney was pronounced dead soon thereafter. All law enforcement personnel at the hospital saluted later that night when the chief's body was escorted away, accompanied by state police troopers and Greenland officer Theodore Hartmann.

In the aftermath of the shooting, LoConte was among those who recounted the events for investigators. He met with two troopers at the Greenland Police Department on April 17.

After speaking for 51 minutes, dissecting the Drug Task Force operation in detail, LoConte reached the close of his remarks, and he was asked if he had anything else to add for the record.

LoConte did not, other than to say Maloney was a hero.

The Winnacunnet High School football field was transformed into a sea of black and blue a few days later, as thousands of law enforcement officers from around the country gathered to honor the fallen chief. Maloney received full military honors at the service, including the playing of taps and a rifle salute. The State Police Airwing also performed a flyover during the ceremony.

Among those who spoke was the state attorney general, Michael Delaney, who said Maloney will serve as a role model for generations of law enforcement to come.

“His love for his community was boundless,” Delaney said. “And his legacy will live on in his family ... he will inspire all of those who are better people and better officers for having known him.

Foster's staff writer Samantha Allen and The Associated Press contributed to this report.